


The Sleeping Sandman

by Amberlin



Series: Guardian Tales [1]
Category: Guardians of Childhood - William Joyce, Rise of the Guardians (2012)
Genre: And crack?, Crack, Deities, Fluff, M/M, Spells & Enchantments, Trolling, True Love, True Love's Kiss, fairy tale, guilt tripping
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-12-31
Updated: 2013-12-31
Packaged: 2018-01-06 21:34:09
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,889
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1111764
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Amberlin/pseuds/Amberlin
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"Is it even possible to put a sleeping enchantment on the Sandman?" Jack asked, doubtful.<br/>"Anything is not possible, but many things are possible," the woman answered cryptically.<br/>"Oh!" Tooth squealed, "This is so exciting!"</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Asleep

**Author's Note:**

> This is a reworking of the "The Sleeping Beauty" fairy tale story that may also be known to some as "Little Briar Rose".

It happened all but two months after the defeat of the Nightmare King: after watching the steady increase of belief bloom across their globes, the Guardians were horrified to find that it was now rapidly decreasing again. North had been the first to notice, the first to react, and--fearing a repeat of recent events--quickly summoned the others to his workshop.

As expected, Bunny and Tooth were the first two to appear, and they did not even have to ask why they were there. They quietly greeted their unofficial leader, politely declined his offer of eggnog, and sat around one of the fireplaces with an air of utmost solemnity. Already it seemed they were diminished, smaller, and incredibly unnerved.

Jack, their newest member, arrived next, and he was far more animated. He flew in on a breeze that toppled the elves, landed upon the workshop's globe and gave a cheeky bow. "What's up?" he asked down to others, who couldn't help but perk up slightly at his arrival.

"Oh Jack, can't you feel it?" Tooth was the first to speak, rising from her chair, "It's the children...they've all started to lose their b-belief again!" Her voice broke near the end and Bunny placed a comforting paw on her shoulder.

"Wait, what?" Jack sounded incredulous, hopping down to their level.

"Is true," North spoke up next, "It has been only few months, yet the balance has somehow been, how you say, disrupted." He shook his head sadly, "At first I thought maybe Pitch, but is far too soon, yes?"

They all nodded; it was entirely unrealistic to suspect the Nightmare King to be fully recovered already. Gathering near the fire again, they begun to discuss whether anyone had seen anything amiss during their vigilance, but nobody could confess to anything so influential. Everyone had been being especially watchful, and Jack revealed that although he had been keeping an eye on the entrance to Pitch's lair, their enemy had remained utterly inactive on the surface.

"We will wait for Sandy, he is most informed out of all of us," North decided, and it was true. After being revived and sealing the Boogieman away, the little Sandman had been working at a breakneck pace, trying to jumpstart the belief that had been almost entirely vanquished in his absence. And along with his previous duties, he'd also taken to chasing down the last of the Nightmares who had gone rogue across the world, and had been making remarkable progress in evening out the balance.

But an hour past, and then two, and no Sandman was forthcoming.

"Y'don't suppose somethin' happened to him, do ya?" Bunny's gaze was turned up to watch the open windows through which the little man usually arrived.

"I haven't really seen him for a few nights," Jack admitted quietly.

The group tensed at this bit of information, for the winter sprite was the most likely to keep in regular contact with their oldest member, and if he said he hasn't seen him...

"We already lost Sandy once," Tooth rose abruptly, "I won't let it happen again."

"Here, here!" Jack cheered and flew up to join her at the same time the others stood.

North had already begun marching across the room before announcing "I will prepare sleigh!"

Jack had never been to the Island of the Sleepy Sands, and so was silently brimming with excitement on the sleigh ride over. It took a portal to break through whatever barrier there was that normally kept intruders out, and when they reappeared above the island's waters he nearly staggered.

The land was composed of the Sandman's familiar trademark of golden particles in the shapes of intricate spirals that all led up to a towering feature that must have been his home. Though that was all that Jack could manage to decipher as he was suddenly overwhelmed with the urge to sleep. _The air,_ he realized belatedly, and so it was: so thick with floating dreamsand it suffocated the conscious, and his post-mortem habit of breathing needlessly had done nothing to discourage it from putting him under.

"Shostakovich!" North exclaimed, slamming his fist against a yellow button on his dashboard. A large dome flickered into life over the entirety of the sleigh and the reindeer, sealing off the sand and giving them all time to come back to their senses--Tooth helpfully shook Jack's shoulder who helpfully thwacked Bunny over the head with his staff.

"OY!" He sputtered angrily, but Jack ignored him in favour of perching next to North in the driver's seat.

"This isn't the usual welcome, I take it?"

The great man shook his head and began lowering their altitude towards the ground for a landing, "Is very _un_ usual. Sand is normally with Sandman, yes? Something is definitely wrong."

They landed as close to the center of the island as possible, and waited for North to pass out spheres the same colour as the button he had pressed--"Will create personal shield for each of us, take good care!"--before marching through the entrance. It was a truly grand structure, with great spiraling columns, and images of marine life in relief and seashells on every inch of wall. Here and there were pools of water that, when looked into, showed colourful schools of fish and beautiful mermaids, all fast asleep at the bottom. Tooth cooed down at their slumbering forms, but they otherwise said nothing as they crossed the entrance chamber and began ascending a great, central staircase.

The further along they went, the thicker the air got with sand. Occasionally they would pass by the familiar figure of a dolphin, butterfly or dinosaur, but otherwise the halls were empty. It also happened that more and more personal effects began to make an appearance--plush armchairs, feathery pillows, stuffed animals and assorted books lined the walls and cluttered the floor--and they found they had to traverse more carefully lest they trip or stub their toes.

"At least we know he's in here," Jack pointed out, ducking a manta ray.

"Oh yeah, that's just aces," Bunny agreed sarcastically, "Though I don't reckon he's in much of a state, bein' as we ain't even seen him yet."

"Y'know," and Jack leaned challengingly into the other's space, "For the Guardian of Hope, you're awfully negative."

"Listen ya little--"

"Guys!" Tooth snapped, forcing herself between them "Can you focus? We're here for Sandy, not to listen to you two argue."

They stepped apart, each looking guiltily away from the other and continued onward.

The hallway ended at an open door into a room that was the fullest they'd seen yet, partially with items similar to the ones they'd passed and partially with strange, fantastical-seeming objects that could not be identified. Whatever they were, for Jack could think of nothing they resembled, they were most probably of an ancient world long since past. In the center of the clutter, on a bed piled high with the most luxurious pillows and blankets, was the Sandman, fast asleep and dreaming.

"Sandy!" They all cried out in unison, in relief, and immediately surrounded the bed.

The little man did not respond to their voices but slept on, and they were disheartened to find that he did not even awaken to their touches.

"Is he ill?" Tooth asked worriedly, physically hovering over him and the bed.

"Don't worry sheila, I'll take a good look at 'im," Bunny soothed. He was the most practiced of them when it came to medicine, the oldest of them besides Sandy, and they all moved back to accommodate his inspection. First he put paw to golden forehead, then he sniffed sunny hair and baby-soft skin, before lastly flicking his tongue over a button nose. "Hm."

"What?" The others crowded forward.

"He's uh..." Bunny began, blinking incredulously, "Well, he's asleep."

"And?" North pressed, looking from Bunny to Sandy and back again, "Why is that? What is wrong?"

Bunny shrugged hopelessly, "Because he's tired? I honestly can't find a bloody thing wrong with him mate."

Tooth all but deflated with relief, sinking from the air to the floor, "Thank goodness...But um, what are we going to do about the children? We can't keep the balance without Sandy."

"Is there no one we can get help from?" Jack asked, "Surely the Guardians have other allies."

The others fell silent in thought, then looked back up in unison.

"Well there is--" Tooth began.

"But she ain't exactly--" Bunny continued.

"What?" Jack looked between them, "Who?"

* * *

"It is most peculiar."

"Ya figure somethin' out?" Bunny asked eagerly.

The woman they had returned with shrugged her elegant shoulders, her dark wavy hair falling in cascades down her back and to the floor, "Nothing so much as a cure, but I can wager some guesses." And she gestured to the sand in the air, "First, the dreamsand is reacting both protectively in order to keep the Sandman safe, as well as to his own unconscious thoughts."

"Nifty," Jack looked around the room appreciatively.

She smiled down at him, soft yet cruel, "Indeed, very nifty."

"But is there a way to wake him up?" Tooth interjected.

Another shrug, "There is nothing blatantly wrong in regards to his health, I can only think that he has somehow exhausted himself with his work and is recuperating. Other than that..."

The Guardians all leaned forward to hear.

"Other than that?" North pressed.

The woman laughed in a way that reminded Jack of the Wind when she giggled, "Why! Just look at his dreams!"

And they did then look at the sand more closely; at first their observations yielded what they'd already seen before, but when they narrowed their focus to the images just above the Sandman's head, it all made much more sense. There was Sandy himself, alone and sad looking, but then suddenly he was scooped up and spun around by a second apparition, dipped and then kissed passionately. Little golden hearts erupted around the pair who began to dance among them, kissing all the while.

"He's...in love?" Jack wagered a guess, and Tooth giggled, having clearly come to the same conclusion.

"Close," the woman responded, "Or perhaps he is giving us a clue."

There was another pause, heavy with thought, then North spoke up more quietly than usual, "There is...story I be hearing long ago, though it was only fairy's tail."

"A fairy tale?" Jack tilted his head, "You don't mean..."

"Aye," North nodded, "About princess who is put under spell and sleeps for forever."

Bunny dropped his head into his paws and groaned, "Ya don't mean to tell me that we gotta find Sandy's true love mate? So's they can kiss?"

"Is it even possible to put a sleeping enchantment on the Sandman?" Jack asked, doubtful.

"Anything is not possible, but many things are possible," the woman answered cryptically.

 _"Oh!"_ Tooth squealed, "This is so exciting!" Then, noticing the other's glares: "I mean it's exciting that we have a plan now," she corrected herself, face reddening.

* * *

The first order of business for Plan: Find Sandy's True Love was to eliminate themselves as possibilities.

Bunny went before everyone else because "I ain't got no attachment to yer human customs," and pressed his furry face to golden lips, but the Sandman slept on.

North went next, planting his kiss with a loud _smack!_ but the Sandman slept on.

Tooth went third, her kiss a quick and tentative thing like the pecking of a bird, but the Sandman slept on.

Jack followed suit, hesitating briefly--this was going to be his first kiss ever and he wasn't sure how he felt about that until he decided that kissing a friend as good as Sandy couldn't possibly ever be a bad thing--and then pressed his cool lips so boldly to the other's that when they parted their breaths were a visible mist in the air, but still the Sandman slept on.

Even the woman gave a kiss, tender like a mother's, but the Sandman slept on.

"So much for that idea," Jack frowned, "Now what do we do?"

"You have no choice but to beseech the other spirits of this world," the woman replied.

"Great," Bunny grumbled, "'Cause they're all so bloody helpful."

"The Sandman is beloved to many," she said simply, "I do not believe it will take much to convince others to help him."

"There are so many spirits, how are we to reach them all?" Tooth despaired.

But the woman gave her a comforting smile, "The Sandman is beloved to me as well. I can reach the whole of the world simultaneously with my powers, and will summon them here."

And so it was decided: the group left the towering home to stand out on the shore of the Island of the Sleepy Sands and waited for the spirits to arrive, hoping that Sandy's true love would be among them and that they could break the spell.


	2. Awake

Having been alone for 300 years, Jack's had a long time to pretend to be things he wasn't, but he never did expect to become a literal bouncer. He also seriously underestimated just how many spirits there were in the world.

"C'mon people, back up, back up!" He ordered, waving his staff out at the growing crowd, trying to herd them like sheep.

They barely listened of course, and many looked affronted by his mere presence, but luckily most of them were of more benevolent or neutral natures. The sheer onslaught of spirits that had arrived after the summons was, needless to say, astounding, and the Guardians had had to spread out just to keep order. Jack was the first 'barricade' because his powers were potentially the farthest reaching, with North guarding the entrance, Tooth flying the stairs and hall, and Bunny and the dark woman standing vigilant by Sandy's bedside.

It was Bunny who had volunteered to take the trip back and forth, leading individual spirits to the slumbering Sandman, then steering them back out the door after determining that the enchantment was still in tact. A couple had taken a bit of manhandling to remove, and the crowd was growing steadily restless after each repeated failure. Jack had to hold them back far enough just to keep them awake and out of the thickness of the dreamsand floating rampantly through the air.

He was relieved when Bunny finally returned again, Helios in tow. "No luck?" Jack asked.

Bunny shook his head, ears flopping, "Not a twitch."

"What else would you expect from a disciple of the sun?" The goddess Nyx sneered from the frontlines.

"You should learn to hold your tongue in the presence of a man, wench!" Helios retorted, his golden aura flaring dangerously.

"Ah, but the lady speaks truth," the nine Lords of the Night hissed in unison, "What would His Nocturnal Magnificence do with the likes of you?"

"Alright guys, that's enough," Jack tried to intervene, standing between the sun spirit and the night spirits.

"Whossse to sssay that day and night even mattersss?" This from the tail of a large chimera, completely ignoring the winter sprite, "You are all narrow-minded foolsss."

"I will not take such trite from a lesser being such as _you_ ," Nyx snarled, lunging at the creature.

"Hey! HEY!" Jack pushed into the crowd sending out warning flares of lightning frost, "Knock it off!" But he was just as overlooked as before, and then things began rapidly escalating.

Fights broke out like a tidal wave--starting from the front and steadily reaching towards the back--and it was a clear division between sun and moon, day and night, with everyone in between simply getting lost in the commotion. Unfortunately, the lattermost group included Jack, who was struggling just to get off the ground and into the air where the violence was at least a little more sporadic. He crawled past the the huddled figures of the Lords of the Night and tried to stand, only to be struck down again by the blunt end of some anonymous weapon, making him lose the grip on his protective orb that went rolling into the sea of bodies. The island itself had begun to shake from all the forces, sand scattering about like angry flies, moving with enough force to sting the skin upon contact, and Jack held his breath for dear life, not wanting to fall asleep in the midst of the chaos.

"Jack!" And that was Bunny's voice, "Jack, the sand!"

Jack wanted to shout back that he knew, that he was smart enough to not breathe it in, but of course he couldn't. He didn't realize that that wasn't what he meant until the Herald of Spring himself suddenly appeared in the crowd, made a mad dash towards him, and scooped him up into his furry arms.

"I got ya frostbite," Bunny panted, leaping over the fights with his powerful hind legs, "We gotta split!"

Jack squirmed within the other's grasp, then realized he was within Bunny's shield and spoke, "Wait! Where are we going?" But he didn't need a reply as he peeked back towards the island to see for himself.

The golden structure that was the Sandman's home had erupted like a spined sea shell, it's points needle sharp and still growing. More were beginning to sprout from the ground like spikey pits, extending out from the center as though in pursuit of the crowd of brawling spirits. Jack could see that North had already reached his sleigh and was flying after them, and a bright flash in the distance revealed that Tooth was also on the move away from the angry structure. Very few others seemed to have noticed the danger--most who could fly were already in league with the rest of the Guardians, whereas the grounded individuals were all entirely oblivious--and Jack was horrified to think that most of the world's spirits may very well end up perishing there.

 _"LISTEN TO ME,"_ a mighty voice rang suddenly from the water, from the Earth, from the sky, _"YOU ARE ALL IN DANGER. YOU MUST FLEE."_

* * *

"The protective instincts of the Sandman's powers have intensified due to the fighting," the woman all but growled, her voice like static, "There is no going back now."

After her warning there'd been a mad stampede to get out of the way of the dreamsand's fury, luckily with no casualities, and though most had fled back to their homes, many others had accompanied the Guardian's back to North's workshop. They had been standing around for the most part, looking very much ashamed and unsure of themselves, though at the woman's words a water nymph did begin to cry. Tooth had wrapped her arms soothingly around the distraught creature, though she herself wept silently too.

Bunny had gone to a private room, probably too proud to break down in front of so many, but Jack had remained with North and the others, and was stubbornly fighting the lump that had formed in his throat.

Surprisingly--or perhaps unsurprisingly--enough, Nyx and Helios, and many of the other solar and lunar deities, had stuck around to learn of the Sandman's fate. They looked the most guilty, and the dark goddess' eyes looked suspiciously bright as she  went on to mourn, "I have failed him."

" _We_ have failed him," Helios corrected, then he turned to the three remaining Guardians and bowed low, "And in doing so we have failed you all as well, I am so sorry."

"Yes, you're all horrible," the woman agreed nastily. She was getting kind of scary, like she was on the edge of smiting them all, "And if it were any but the Sandman's fate, I would abandon each and every one of you."

The crowd all winced at her harsh words, but Jack couldn't help perking up slightly at her insinuation, "Are you...are you saying you have another idea?"

* * *

"Absolutely _not_."

The Nightmare King practically hissed at them like an angry cat, slinking through the shadows, eyes a piercing glare in the darkness.

"You are only one who can affect dreamsand, yes?" North was trying his best to seem encouraging, flattering, for all he probably just wanted to grab the other man by the scruff and drag him out, kicking and screaming, "Should be piece of cake for you!"

"I would accept no pastries from _you_ , nor would I care to revive the Sandman," Pitch sneered, his disembodied voice filling the cavern, "Now get out." Despite his recent defeat, the Boogieman was already surprisingly powerful again, and it was doubtful that they could catch him within his own lair like this. The most they could hope to do was to be annoying enough to convince him without first getting terrified and leaving--Bunny's fur and Tooth's feathers were already standing straight on end as they circled the room warily.

Nyx and the Lords of the Night had gone eerily quiet since arriving, probably torn between wanting to help but also not wanting to offend their superior. Helios, on the other hand, stood tall and proud, a defiant beacon of light in the darkness that Jack couldn't help hovering close to.

"You would condemn him?" The luminous man barked, "And what right have you?"

Pitch chuckled darkly from the walls, the floor, the ceiling, "More right than you, certainly, but look at what you've already done."

A collective wince--"Like daughter like father," Bunny muttered--and the Nightmare King laughed again cruelly.

"Sanderson's a fool," he continued, "A fool who put all his eggs into the wrong basket. What hope have you? What can your precious wonder do? Without him, without the help of your greatest enemy, you will crumble and rightfully so. I should thank you, I really should, as the longer you despair the stronger I become. The Dark Ages will come again and I didn't even have to lift a finger!"

"Shut up!" Tooth shouted, white with fury.

Jack had to squash down his own anger just so that he could think. It was clear that Pitch wouldn't help out of kindness or under any sort of threat, but everyone had their price. His mind raced desperately for the answer, and when he came to the obvious conclusion he couldn't help the mischievous smirk that split his face. They had just one option left: bribery.

* * *

The group stood at the farthest edges of the Island of the Sleepy Sands on a platform of ice in the surrounding water--helpfully supplied by the Guardian of Fun--and gaped up at the structure. They'd all been so terrified of getting hurt, of dying, of falling asleep here for eternity, that none of them had had the time to really appreciate the enormity of it all. The lethal-looking barbs had spread like a nasty rash from the center of the island out, and even the surface of the water was broken where spikes had erupted from the sea floor.

Pitch looked entirely unimpressed at the display, going so far as to swat a lazy hand at the sand that was still buzzing around the air, but this just gave the rest of them hope.

"Sure you're still up for the challenge?" Jack queried, smirk in place.

"The deal stands. I keep every inch of sand I change as my own," he replied.

The winter sprite nodded and knelt down, tapping his staff against the water which froze instantaneously and spread forward across the distance. He didn't stand up again until the ice bridge reached the shore of the island, near the entrance, but by then Pitch had already marched fearlessly halfway across it, scythe in hand. He sliced expertly through every spike he happened to walk by along the way without pause, rendering them black.

"You better bring him back unharmed!" Tooth shouted after what was possibly the strangest knightly hero any of them had ever seen.

He did not look back and he did not reply.

* * *

Pitch took his time exploring the Sandman's home, dragging his hands along walls, darkening the ground beneath his feet, and occasionally beheading a unicorn or whatever other creature happened along his way. He was going to take as much of the dreamsand as possible before checking on the slumbering fool, and that was if he even bothered to. At least, that had been the plan, until he was intercepted by a stream of giant golden butterflies.

His first reaction, of course, was to capture one of them in order to crush it between his fingers, but, for whatever reason, he found pause. Spreading his long digits out instead, Pitch inspected his catch; the butterfly was perfectly still against his palm, it didn't even quiver, and while normally he would anger at the stupidity of it, he found himself oddly warmed.

With a sigh he threw the butterfly back into the air, still in all its golden glory, and followed it as it led him down a long, cluttered hallway. When he came upon the comatose body of the Sandman, he hesitated outside the doorway, watching as the butterfly fluttered above the bed as though egging him on.

"Alright..." The Boogieman acquiesced, ducking slightly in order so that he may pass through into the room. He walked slowly, stepping over objects that made his chest ache with nostalgia and stuffed animals that were so ridiculous he couldn't help rolling his eyes. When he reached the Sandman's side he took a moment to take in the sunny face as it rested, the little hands that clutched at articles of comfort, and knelt to the floor in order to be nearer.

He was probably a ridiculous sight, this black smudge of filth amongst golden wonders, but eons of living had left him with little shame. "Look at you," he whispered softly into tiny ears like seashells, but of course there was no response. It was eerie, this little figure that was normally so loud in his silence, rendered completely and utterly mute, when by all accounts he should be sassing this dark intruder from here to Easter Sunday.

Pitch stayed there for a while, bent on one knee, watching for any sign of activity. Eventually he looked away from the cherub-like face, and up to the butterfly that was still circling above them. It swooped down gently from the air and landed lightly upon his mouth, a brave thing and foolish thing, then _poofed!_ into formless dust.

Blinking, Pitch ran a dark tongue across his lips, then looked back down to his nemesis. It was a trifling thing really, to simply press his dark mouth against the sweetness of the other's and hold keep himself there. Leaning forward, he wondered briefly if his touch would be like venom, if he didn't need an arrow, but was caught off from this line of thought when suddenly his face was captured and a raspberry was blown onto his lips.

 _"S-SANDERSON!"_ The Boogieman sputtered, shoving the smaller man away and falling back onto his butt.

And so it was; Sandy was roaring with silent laughter on his bed, tangling himself within his sheets and kicking his little feet into the air.

"You--" Pitch's face was vibrantly purple, "You _faker!_ You've just been resting this entire time?!"

The little man could hardly contain himself, even his eyes were watering, but he finally managed a nod and the Nightmare King was instantly livid.

"You lazed around in bed for _days_ , letting the entirety of the spirit world make out with you and nearly become overcome with terror?" He rose from the floor, towering and furious, "Their fears were so potent, my powers were restored within the day-- _WITHIN THE DAY_ \--Sanderson, you are the most irresponsible, the most immature--"

But Sandy was unphased, he even had the nerve to smile cheekily and make kissy faces up at him.

Pitch's eye twitched. He took a deep, relaxing breath. Then he took about fifty more.

Sandy waited patiently for him, and patted a spot on the bed next to him when the taller man had finally garnered some sense of calm. When the Boogieman sat obediently, he fixed him with an expectant look.

Now, the two of them were like night and day, and it had been that way since the start of their lives on Earth, but they had also known each other for many, many years. It didn't take Pitch any measure of time to figure out what he was being told. "You restored my powers on purpose," he stated, knowing it to be true, and then "Sanderson, you are the biggest fool I know."

He hated that he didn't hate the gap-toothed smile he was given, and was only angered further when the little golden man had the nerve to crawl into his lap.

"I shot you down before," Pitch tried and Sandy nodded sagely in agreement. He had incredibly messy hair, and imprints on his cheek from the pillow, and it was in no way adorable.

"The others are waiting just outside," he tried again, only to receive a careless shrug and to be pushed down onto the plush mattress.

"I'm going to _kill_ y--" And Sandy pressed his golden lips to the other's as softly as a butterfly, and the Boogieman slept on.


End file.
